Deltona Fire Chief Bush Buscher told the City Commission on Nov. 3 that Deltona's five fire stations are operating under growing strain and recommended rebuilding and relocating facilities and adding stations to improve response times and reduce unit overload.

Buscher said the department ran 11,950 calls in 2024, up from 8,311 in 2010, and recorded 19,518 apparatus responses in 2024. "We're typically doing [first-due travel time] in about 7 minutes and 24 seconds," he told the commission, compared with the NFPA/ISO target of roughly four minutes for first-due travel time.

Why it matters: longer travel and dispatch times can delay care on medical and fire emergencies. Buscher noted the county's dispatch processing averaged 3 minutes, 3 seconds in 2024, which adds to total response time and is outside the fire department's direct control. A public commenter warned that "people will start going brain dead after 4 minutes," a remark the commission acknowledged during public comment.

The presentation and analysis

Buscher reviewed the condition and role of the city's stations: Station 61 (built 1974) is structurally older and at capacity; Station 62 (2005) sits back in a neighborhood and may be poorly sited for main-road response; Station 63 (1978) and Station 64 (a 1996 metal building) are outdated and near capacity; and Station 65 (2012) is the most modern but houses substantial specialized equipment with limited personnel. Buscher said some stations are maxed out on staffing and equipment and that a data-driven realignment could reduce overlap and improve coverage.

Buscher presented two independent analyses: a historical-criteria analysis run through the department's Dark Horse software (which maps how often NFPA/ISO criteria were met) and a GIS drive-time/AVL analysis prepared by Nicole Robles in the city's GIS office. "Red is bad," Buscher said of areas shown in both products where coverage does not meet performance benchmarks. He said both analyses identified similar geographic gaps.

Consultants and benchmarks

Buscher cited a past Fitch & Associates evaluation and city data showing that achieving a four-minute travel time across the city more than 90% of the time would require roughly 21 stations, while a more modest 6'7-minute aim would require about eight to 11 stations; Deltona currently has five. He described utilization benchmarks (a commonly referenced target of about 30% unit utilization) and said Medic 61 is above that target, Medic 63 is approaching it and Medic 64 is near 20% year-to-date, indicating staffing and unit strain.

Options presented

Buscher recommended several near- and longer-term options: rebuild Station 64 on adjacent property if available; relocate or split Station 62 into two sites (referred to in the presentation as 62A and 62B) to reduce long travel distances from the current Diamond Street location; and add a new station in northeastern Deltona (Commission District 1), which currently has long travel times and growing housing. He said a realistic, data-driven plan could move the city from five to seven stations as an initial step.

Staffing, equipment and county transport approval

Commissioners repeatedly emphasized that new buildings alone will not reduce response times without additional personnel and apparatus. Commissioner Novick said, "That is completely unacceptable," when citing the 3:03 dispatch processing time, and urged the city to prioritize manpower and transport units. Novick also recommended placing more personnel on a new squad and noted lead times for apparatus (commissioners said modern engines can take roughly 1.5'2 years to build).

Chief Buscher and the city manager told commissioners the county controls approval for locally owned transport units to operate as transports; Deltona's request for a fourth transport had been denied by the county. The city manager said staff would convene county and city stakeholders to address that denial and determine next steps.

Funding, grants and next steps

Vice Mayor Harriot noted the city had applied for a SAFER grant and urged using a standardized station design created by an architect so the city can evaluate multiple properties consistently. Commissioners also discussed potential property options raised by the presentation (including general reference areas near Providence, Normandy and a commercial plaza by a Walgreens) and cautioned staff not to prematurely publicize specific acquisition targets so as not to affect negotiations.

What was not decided

No formal votes or binding commitments were taken at the meeting. Commissioners directed staff to continue planning, to pursue clarity with the county on transport approvals, and to incorporate GIS layers and consultant data into future budget and site-selection work. Buscher and staff will return with further information for commission consideration.

Ending

City officials said they will proceed with follow-up work on transport approvals, station design procurement and grant opportunities; commissioners signaled broad support for pursuing a mix of renovations, targeted rebuilding (Station 64), and new or relocated stations to address identified coverage gaps.